It's Hard To Be A Saint In The City
by Cionie9
Summary: Captain America trying to get used to the modern world! Only I decided to opt out of the cliche 'female SHIELD agent/superhero is assigned to help him assimilate and they end up falling in love'. So here's something more down to earth for ya'll.
1. Juke Box Saturday Night

**Author's Notes: Avenger's bandwagon ggoooooo!**

**Haha, this is something that is fun to write, funny to read and something I don't plan on being more than, like, 5 chapters long. So, yeah. Captain America trying to get used to the modern world! Only I decided to opt out of the cliche 'female SHIELD agent/superhero is assigned to help him assimilate and they end up falling in love'. So if you're looking fro something a bit more down to earth, look no further :)**

**M is for language, though I'm thinking there might be something 'more' a bit later ;) Ooohhh, I'm evil! Anywho, let me know if there is a particular thing you want to see happen in the story, I'm writing this just for fun so don't expect too much in-depth plot thingymajigs.**

**Enjoy!**

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Why in the world did Steve let Tony talk him into doing this? It wasn't like he could even get drunk, so why bother taking him to a bar? And where the hell had Tony gone?

These thoughts passed quickly through Steve Roger's head as he leaned nervously against the bar, waiting for Tony to come back from wherever he had disappeared to. The night was still young but the guys had already had some drinks back at Stark Tower before Tony had come up with this ridiculous idea. As mentioned before, Steve couldn't actually get drunk so the alcohol couldn't be blamed for his judgment call, or lack-there-of, for letting Mr. Stark talk him into this.

"_Really, there are so many people impersonating me, and really, who could blame them, and no one really knows what you actually look like under all that…" Tony motioned broadly to Steve's physique with his hands, "star-spangled, uh, uniform? Is that what you like to call it? Because I think leotard is really more accurate."_

"_You had a point coming?" Steve said as he rolled his eyes in annoyance. Tony was already buzzed but that couldn't account for the fact that he took an opportunity to make fun of his uniform any chance he could get. "And I think you said the word 'really' about four times in that sentence."_

"_I think what Stark is trying to say is that it might do you some good to get out a bit more; as strange as that might sound coming from me," came Bruce Banner's slow voice, very much in contrast with Tony's fast-paced and jumpy banter._

"_Exactly, what he said. And you know I would totally take you out too if I thought you might not, you know… uh…"_

"_No, no, it's all right, I'm not really into that kind of thing anyway," Bruce responded, nursing his highball. He only ever had one and it took him forever to drink it._

_Turning his attention back on Steve, Tony expanded on his idea, "Look, there's this great sports bar I've heard of, a real no-name kind of joint where people won't even care if we look familiar. They'll probably think we're just copycats anyway, so to speak."_

_He waited a whole two seconds for Steve to reply; which, incidentally, was not nearly enough time for the Captain to process the idea._

"_Come on, it could be fun!"_

"…"

"_Great! Get dressed! And I don't mean what you're wearing now; it'd boring. Something that doesn't scream 'military-civies'."_

And so Steve now finds himself taking a drink from his beer, which wasn't even all that good, and searching the crowded sports bar with his eyes, trying to figure out where Tony was and why he had left him standing at the bar.

Finally he caught sight of the billionaire walking back toward him. Though, to his great displeasure, the man was surrounded by a small gaggle of very made-up women at least 10 years younger that him.

"Ladies, I'd like you to meet my friend here, Mr. Rogers. Ah, but don't let him fool you, his polite charms are only a guise to hide what he can really do with those sweater-vests."

An eruption of laughter came from the girls as if they were one body. Steve didn't understand Tony's line, he doesn't even own a sweater-vest, but the looks some of the girls were now giving him and the tone of Tony's voice when he'd said it made the soldier blush with uncertainty.

"Don't be shy Sir, say hi to our new friends," Tony said, giving Steve a grin that said he'd had too much to drink and was having way too much fun with the situation.

"Uh, hi, um, ladies," Steve managed to get out, crossing his arms over his chest. The action made him look like he was more relaxed, but it was really more of a self-conscious thing. One of the women draped her arm over his shoulder and asked, in a strong vodka smelling voice, if 'Mr. Rogers,' had a first name.

Tony moved to stand next to the Captain and half whispered in his ear, "I'm going to take these two over to the dance floor. You should loosen up and see if you can't get to know one, or all, of these ladies by the end of the night, m'kay?"

"Wait what? Tony- TONY! Tony you can't just leave me here with- … … uh, hi."

Steve shot Tony's retreating back a searing look as the remaining three women closed in on him.

One of them, a blond, giggled, "You already said hi. Buy us a drink, handsome?" she asked while batting heavily massacred eyes at him. Steve took a deep breath to calm himself, but then did a double take.

"Are, are you under-aged?" he asked, practically squinting at the blond to see past her very made-up face. She now looked offended and protested loudly about how she 'was here, wasn't she?'

"Uh… I'm sorry ma'am, I didn't mean to be rude," Steve tried to amend. Oh goodness, this was going to be a llooonnggg night.

Though maybe not as long as it had first seemed; just as he was starting to wonder how to get out of this mess, a voice he didn't recognize came from behind him.

"Hey bitch, this is my boyfriend your messing with so why don't you back off?"

Turning to see whom the voice belonged to, Steve was met with a dark haired woman behind the bar, dressed in black and obviously an employee. Her eyes didn't even acknowledge him as she stared down the three girls with a vicious look.

"Oh really? And who the fuck do you think you are to control who he wants to flirt with?" One of the girls, a brunette, responded. She almost spilled her drink as her body swayed to convey attitude.

"I'm the bitch whose gonna throw your asses out of here for underage drinking. So why not make this easy and get the fuck out before I call the cops," the mystery bartender said, not even blinking an eye. Steve marveled at her control and watched, awestruck, as the three girls dispersed. Though, not before the blond flipped the woman off in a pale attempt at vengeance.

"Wow, that was… thank you," was all he could say, turning back to the bar. He let out a breath he hadn't known he was holding.

"No problem, sorry about the boyfriend thing. That sometimes works to scare them off and you looked desperate," she said with an easy smile that softened her features from what they were just a minute ago. "I'm Lucy, by the way."

"Steve Rogers. Do you do that often?" He asked with a smile of his own while relaxing on his bar stool.

"Haha, no, not usually. Only if I think the guy it's happening to really doesn't deserve it." Her laugh was light-hearted and clear. "Of course, if the guy is as cute as you that tends to help my decision making process," she added in a flirting tone.

"Heh, do I really look that out of place here?" Steve asked with a chuckle of his own. The bar was almost nothing like the bars were from his time. Well, sure there were the drunks that would always be present, but the whole scene was different in so many small ways. The amount of women vs. men, the clothing, the music, the company… even most of the drinks were foreign to him. His sense of being uncomfortable must have shown in his eyes because Lucy put down the cup she had been drying and filled it with a scotch.

"Here, on the house. And don't worry about those people, it's nothing to be ashamed of if you don't care to get shit-faced with the rest of those ass-holes," her language was coarse but her intentions were kind and Steve appreciated it. Of course, it helped he found it humorous that Tony Stark was one of those 'shit-faced ass-holes' on the floor she had just referred to. He'd have to tell Banner about that one later.

"So, Mr. Rogers, what brings a straight-laced guy like you to a dump like this?" Lucy asked, bringing Steve's mind back to the bar. She took down a martini glass and began mixing something another bartender had ordered, but kept her attention on him.

"Ah, my, uh, friend thought I needed to get out and 'experience the world more'; as he put it," he responded after taking a drink from the glass. The scotch burnt his throat, but it was good; too bad it wouldn't do anything though. "And, you can call me Steve, ma'am."

"Alright _Steve_, but you better stop calling me ma'am or I'll take that drink back and kick your ass right off that stool." Steve couldn't help but laugh at the playful tone in her voice, but the obviously serious look her eyes had taken on.

"Yes ma'am- uh! I meant, Lucy… duly noted," came his military-trained response.

"What are you, a soldier? You sound like you just came from the army," Lucy was teasing, though she obviously didn't know how close she was.

"Well, yes, actually, I am in the military. Well, sort of. I mean, I _was_ in the military, but now I'm with something else, but it's complicated… uh, I guess-"

"Okay, okay I get it, you're an soldier-boy," she managed to stop him mid-stumble as he tried to explain the very complicated position his career currently fell under. To avoid the look of slight embarrassment on his cheeks, Steve took another sip of scotch.

"So, are you from around here? I mean, from Brooklyn?" Steve asked, breaking the small silence that had formed while Lucy filled some orders and Steve finished his scotch.

"Ha, why? Are you not?" she asked with that light-hearted laugh again. The sound was almost warm and it made Steve smile to hear it.

"I am, originally. I guess you could say I haven't been back here in a very long time. To be honest I can barely recognize the place sometimes."

"Okay, so you're not just some tourist. We don't get many tourists here, so I usually assume people are from the area," she said. "How long has it been since you were here last?"

"Ah… I… very young. I mean, I was really young… when I left," he lied. Well, maybe it wasn't a complete lie. He was only about 18 when he was recruited after all.

"I see. Well I'll tell you what, soldier-boy, I've got to keep working but if you ever want someone to show you around… let me know," she said with a coy smile as she wrote something down and slid him a piece of paper. Steve could barely look away from her eyes as she did this but came out of the trance when he remembered the paper.

Confused, he opened the folded piece and his eyes widened in a dawning recognition of what had just happened. Well then, this could be interesting.


	2. Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered

**Author's Notes: Teehee, I couldn't help but giggle as I was writing this chapter :p Ya'll can expect a chapter a week, I think... I have chapter 3 almost ready and working on the concept for chapter 4. If you have any suggestions or things you want to see happen, let me know!  
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Steve was pacing in front of the impressive view his room at Stark Tower gave him of New York. Before, he might have marveled at the expanded skyline but now, almost 3 months after the war of the worlds, with all the construction to rebuild the skyscrapers of Manhattan, it didn't look that different from the 40s. Bruce Banner sat idly watching the indecisive soldier as he tinkered with some sort of machinery in his hands.

"I know I'm usually the one to advocate for staying low-profile, but it might not hurt to just… call her," Banner said when Steve had led his hand for the umpteenth time through his already messy hair. It was rather humorous, actually, to see the normally clean-cut look of the Captain degrade into what Tony might refer to as the 'first date jitters'. Not that Steve would be calling for a date, of course. No, it would just be to take up her offer of showing him around some of NY… like a civilian, not a superhero… it wouldn't be a date.

"Alright, who wants to go to Dubai?" Tony's energetic self came through the doors with his usual whirlwind. Clapping his hands together he looked from the calm professor to the rather disheveled Captain with interest. Banner just shrugged his shoulders while Steve gave an exasperated sigh and turned back to the windows. "What's eatin' him?" Tony asked, referring to Steve's back.

"He's, ah, having girl troubles," Banner said with an amused smile. Tony's eyebrows rose almost to meet his hairline and he quickly looked back to Steve, who had turned around and shot Bruce a look of utter betrayal.

"Girl troubles."

It was a statement, not a question.

"No. There's just a girl, no troubles, no nothing," Steve said, trying to defend his point. "No girl troubles."

Tony blinked in slight disbelief, his eyes still wide. Banner chuckled as you could almost see his mind working to fill in the blanks.

As though to show he'd reached a conclusion that supported some hypothesis, Tony's face broke into a mischievous grin.

"So then, Cap., does this 'girl'," he made the quotation signs with his fingers and spoke as though Steve were a teenager again, "have a name?"

"Yes," Steve said. Short and sweet.

"And it would be…"

"Lucy. Her name is Lucy," if Steve knew any better he'd leave, right now, and avoid what was surely coming.

"Lucy. Nice name, kinda old-fashioned but I can see where that appeal would be for you- "

"No, I'm not- I mean, she's not like that kind of girl!" Steve tried again, in vain, to deter Tony from what was obvious. However, Steve had not been at this game nearly as long as Tony had.

Understanding he would have to treat the situation like he was calming a scared animal in order to get anymore out of Steve, Tony put his hands up in defense.

"Okay, okay, I understand. She's not 'that kind', okay," neither of them defined what 'that kind' was. Tony didn't to leave options open; Steve didn't because he hadn't thought to.

"So let's start with the easy things: where did you meet a girl?" Tony was genuinely curious. The Captain didn't usually do too much outside the Tower so he _had_ to have met a girl without Tony knowing right away?

Steve didn't appreciate Tony's tone, however. It wasn't like he was incapable of being social or anything.

"At the, uh, bar. Two nights ago."

Oh… _that_ bar!

"Wait, this isn't one of those girls I kinda-sorta dumped on you, sorry about that, by the way, right? Because none of them were really your type- "

"No! No, oh golly, no!" Steve said.

"Okay good because… did you just use the word golly?" Tony asked, sidetracked again.

Bruce, who had been quiet, chuckled again. Steve looked between them with that somewhat confused expression he gets when he misses a modern reference.

"Alright alright alright, so she's still not 'that kind' of girl," Steve gave him another questioning look, "and you _talked_ to her, obviously," Steve rolled his eyes. This conversation was not what he had wanted at all, "and she… what? Gave you her number? Asked you out? What? How do you get in contact with her? Carrier pigeon?"

Ignoring Tony's last comment, Steve nervously fiddled with the piece of paper in his hand. He avoided Tony's eyes in a self-conscious way, unknowingly giving the would-be playboy every answer he needed.

Tony sent an inquisitive look to Banner.

"It's in his hand."

"Thanks!" Tony then swooped down and snatched the slip from Steve's hand before he could process what was happening.

"What? No! No 'thanks'; Dr. Banner!" Bruce just gave an innocent shrug as an answer, forcing Steve to look, almost pleadingly, at Tony.

"Well, it isn't blaringly fake so it could be real, I suppose. Though to be fair I could understand why the ladies might like you, what with the whole 'big buff, nice boy' act you've got going but, hey, there's always the chance…"

"What are you talk- "

"Ah, JARVIS, dial this number for me, will you?"

"No! No, JARVIS, don't dial anything! Tony!" Steve's eyes were wide and he tried to snatch Tony's phone from him but the annoying man just 'shushed' him impatiently and said "It's ringing!"

"Tony."

"_Hello?"_

"Oh crap! There's actually a girl on the other end!" Tony said, quickly taking the phone away from his head so whoever was on the other line wouldn't hear him.

"Of course there is! Tony hang up!" Steve pleaded in a whisper.

"What? No! She sounds hot; here, you take it," Tony practically threw the phone at Steve who, in turn, almost dropped it as another, more impatient 'hello?' sounded from the mouthpiece.

"_Listen if this is some prank call I'll track this you mother- "_

"Hi! Uh, no! It's not a prank, sorry. Uh, hi," Steve said quickly while trying to ignore the amused looks of the other two men in the room.

"_Who is this?"_

It was defiantly Lucy's voice. Knowing this made Steve a bit more comfortable but now he wasn't quite sure what to say.

"It's Steve. Steve Rogers. From the bar the other night… uh, look I'm sorry I called I'll just go- "

"No! You can't hang up!" Tony whispered intensely. "Ask if she wants to meet you for coffee!" Steve waved his hand to tell Tony to shut it.

"_From the… Oh, Soldier-boy! Hi, I'm sorry, it's been a pretty crazy day, I didn't mean to scare you off!"_

She laughed over the phone and it brought a smile to Steve's face.

"No, no, it's alright. I, uh, I wasn't sure I should have called," he said, trying to sound relaxed.

"_Hey, no, don't worry about it. Actually, what are you doing right now? Do you wanna meet me somewhere? I have _got_ to get out of this house."_

"She wants to meet you? Where? Where?" Tony asked, like an impatient child. Banner was quite, as usual, but he was watching the situation with great interest.

"Uh, yeah, sure! Where? I mean, you're in Brooklyn, right?" Steve started walking in front of the windows with the phone, trying to keep Tony out of his face.

"_Where are you? We can meet halfway and grab coffee or something."_

"Yeah! I'm in Manhattan, where would…"

"The bridge! Tell her to meet you on the bridge!"

"How about the Brooklyn Bridge?"

"_Sure I'll meet you there."_

"Great! Uh, bye."

Steve smiled to himself and turned back to see Tony moving quickly away from where he had almost perched on his back to hear the conversation. The man was clutching his chin in a thoughtful manner, but they all knew it was because he couldn't keep his hands still when he was excited otherwise.

"So," Tony said, as if to calmly finish their earlier conversation.

"So."

"You're not going to wear that, are you?"

"Shut up."


	3. It's A Big, Wide, Wonderful World

**Author's Notes: Happy Memorial Day!  
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**Please let me know what you think about the story and where it's going! I had a great review last chapter where someone brought up some interesting points about Lucy's character (which, btw, I've taken into account and they'll show more in the next chapter); I love those kind's of comments! Also, I'll give a batch of interweb cookies to anyone who can tell me how all the chapter titles are connected ;)  
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**It's A Big, Wide, Wonderful World**

Ah, the Brooklyn Bridge. One of the oldest standing structures of the NY metro area, it was constructed way back in 1883 and was the longest standing suspension bridge from its opening until 1903.

- On March 1, 1994, Lebanese-born Rashid Baz opened fire on a van carrying members of the Chabad-Lubavitch Orthodox Jewish Movement, striking 16-year-old student Ari Halberstam and three others traveling on the bridge. Halberstam died five days later from his wounds.

- In 2003, truck driver Iyman Faris was sentenced to about 20 years in prison for providing material support to Al-Qaeda, after an earlier plot to destroy the bridge by cutting through its support wires with blowtorches was thwarted through information the National Security Agency uncovered through wiretapped phone conversations and interrogation of Al-Qaeda militants.

- On October 1, 2011, more than 700 protesters with the Occupy Wall Street movement were arrested while attempting to march across the bridge on the roadway.

Steve didn't know any of this as he stood on the walkway of the famous monument, his stance that of a soldier at ease, his mind that of a nervous teenager waiting for someone he isn't sure would, or would not, qualify as a date.

"Hi there! Thanks for coming out, it's been one hell of a day and it's only 2 o'clock," Lucy said with a grin as she joined the Captain above the East River. Her expression was laughing but her eyes looked tired.

"No problem, thanks for, uh, not hanging up on me," Steve said with a smile back. It was almost officially summer and there was a refreshing breeze coming off the river; Steve was, physically, much more at ease than he had been 5 minutes before Lucy showed up. His smile was easy and Lucy couldn't help but notice how handsome the guy looked in the daytime. Not that she hadn't noticed his good looks in the bar… it was why she gave him her number in the first place! But there was something completely different about seeing him like this.

"So, shall we go? I wouldn't be a very good tour guide if I didn't show you around, now would I?" Lucy said. She promptly turned around and began leading Steve towards the Brooklyn exit of the bridge. The Captain followed her and she slowed her pace to walk beside him.

The walk down the bridge was fun. Lucy seemed to be an energetic person, and rather knowledgeable about the waterfront, so she made a good conversationalist. Most of the information about the river wasn't too unexpected for Steve; companies came and went just as often in the 30s and 40s as they did, apparently, over the past 70 years. A lot of the manufacturing companies had shut down and moved oversees, a fact that he had heard Tony and Dr. Banner talk about a lot lately, and the tourist trade had increased since the 9/ll attack, an event Steve still had some trouble trying to image (they really built buildings _that_ tall?), but the tourists were starting to slim with the economic crash in '08.

Still, Steve was beginning to understand that history repeated itself. When he was young, his father told of the Great Depression, and, in 1941, there was the attack on Pearl Harbor, the first attack on American soil since the War of 1812.

At least he could smile at the idea that, if history truly did repeat itself, then the destruction of Manhattan would pass, the economy would again revive, and better days for the American people were ahead.

Lucy noticed his smile and returned it, taking it as confirmation that she wasn't boring him. Well, she was certainly enjoying herself! Something she hadn't really gotten to do in a long time.

When they finally reached the end of the bridge, a very long walk if you have ever done it, Lucy suggested coffee and steered Steve in the direction of a place called Vineapple a few blocks over.

"Vine-apple?"

"Yep! Best coffee in town, if you ask me. Don't even give me the 'Starbucks is better' crap, I'm not buying it!" Lucy said defiantly. "Here it is, right on Pineapple Street."

"Pineapple… you've got to be kidding me!" Steve said with a laugh.

"You won't be laughing once how awesome the coffee is shuts you up!"

She was right; the coffee _was_ good. And there were all sorts of different ways to take the coffee too, something Steve was beginning to realize was a norm with coffee shops in the Present. He made a mental note to tell Tony about this place; though he probably prefers his own whatever-imported, custom-somethingorother, overly-expensive coffee.

A sort of comfortable silence settled over the two as they just enjoyed the moment. Well, it was silent until Lucy started shouting at something behind Steve.

"What the hell? That was totally a foul!" she said, forgetting for a moment that she was with someone, and in public. Turning curiously to see what she was so mad at, Steve noticed the television behind him, apparently playing a baseball game.

A smile came on his face as he recognized the past time, but then transformed into one of pure amusement as he recognized one of the teams.

"Ha! The Yankees? No way!" Finally! Something that hadn't changed! World War II may have taken some of the best players of Steve's time, but apparently time hadn't taken everything familiar. Steve was never a Yankees' fan but it was still nice to see a familiar name.

"Yes! Make 'em run for it A-Rod!" Lucy whooped, making Steve laugh and focus again on the enticing game on TV. At least, until he noticed which team Lucy was rooting for.

"Wait, you can't tell me you're a Yankees' fan? You're from Brooklyn! What about the Dodgers?" he asked with a sort of mocking laughter which was really just all in good fun.

"Uh, the Dodgers? As in the Los Angeles Dodgers? They haven't been a Brooklyn team since, like, the 50s; where have you been?" Lucy responded, obviously as much a baseball fan as he was; or, as much as he _was_.

"Since the- you've got to be kidding me," Steve said, a look of blank shock coming over his features. The Brooklyn Dodgers weren't from Brooklyn anymore and the Yankees were the only team now? Or the Mets, whoever they were… Where had he been? Well, right there was another reminder, apparently. "I- I suppose I missed that," he said quietly.

Something in his eyes caught Lucy and she put her drink down and looked, really looked, in Steve's eyes. What was that? A kind of… old sadness; as if he were remembering something from a long, long time ago. "Hey, are you okay?"

"Yeah, yeah… I guess I just- I've been away from this place a bit too long, that's all."

Lucy took a moment to process her next comment by taking another sip from her coffee cup.

"I you don't mind me asking… where have you been? I mean, since you were last in Brooklyn?" she asked in a careful tone.

Steve looked ahead of him for a long moment before answering, as though he were trying to compile all the possible answers he could give her, without being too vague.

"Well, that's quite the question, isn't it?" he said, smiling as he sat back in his chair, arms crossed and his face in thoughtful repose. "I spent some time in Italy, then Germany, France, England, Sweden… Canada, sort of… then Germany again, for a short time, then I suppose I just flew around all over the place a lot… met a lot of strange people… until finally back to New York in March."

"Oh… wow. That's- you've really been to all those places? Hell, I've never even left the city before!" Lucy said, fascination written all over her face. Her coffee cup was if her hand, but obviously forgotten.

"Haha, yeah well, it wasn't exactly a vacation!" Steve said with a big smile. Somehow, looking back on everything in this simplified way made it easier to stomach.

"Wow," she said again, still not sure how to respond. "And you were with the army the whole time?"

"Yes, well… yes."

Lucy bit her tongue to prevent another 'wow' from escaping. It sounded like a rough life.

"Were you ever in the Middle East?" she asked before thinking, then amended her comment hastily, "Sorry, I… I don't mean to pry."

"Nah, it's alright! No, I've never been there, though I know someone who has."

"Oh, well, at least you didn't have to be on the front lines all the time then," she responded with a relieved smile. She also knew some people who had been there; hell, everyone knew someone at this point!

"Ah… well, I…" _how do I answer that?_ He thought nervously. Instead of replying, an uncomfortable silence settled between them.

_Well, this is awkward._

As if to save them, Lucy's cell phone rang; some dancy sounding song rang out from the small device like its very life depended on it. "Ah!" it was funny, Steve was the one still getting used to having things emit strange sounds at any given moment, and she was the one sounding surprised by it, "I'm sorry, do you mind if I take this? It's kind of important," she asked with an apologetic look. Steve, also glad that the silence had been broken, said it was fine and tried to look casual as he curiously watched her step away from the table.

He shouldn't be listening. Eavesdropping was rude, especially when it didn't directly involve gathering information on a martial enemy of the country/Earth. Still, though… curiosity killed the cat.

"Hi Bill, what's up?"

Lucy sounded a bit agitated and her stance kept shifting as the person on the other end relayed what was, indeed, up.

"Shit… you've got to be fucking kidding me. You're sure?"

Bill was sure, apparently.

"Alright, just keep an eye on him for me? I'll be there as soon as I can.

No, no, I'll be fine! I can handle that asshole drunk, or sober," she assured Bill.

"Thanks Bill, I appreciate it. I'll talk to you later… bye."

Steve finished the last of his coffee for the sole purpose of looking unsuspecting, but Lucy was now quite distracted and didn't notice, or chose not to notice, that he might have been listening in.

"Listen, I'm really sorry but I've got to get home. It was great hanging out with you, though! We should do this again sometime!"

Her tone was positive but her eyes were nervous and her presence was tense.

"Yeah, that's fine. Is everything alright?" Steve asked, worried.

"Yeah, yeah… well, sort of not. I've just got to deal with something at home before it gets out of hand… Really, I'm sorry for bailing but I've got to go," she said hastily.

They said goodbye and Steve watched her hurry down the street and flag a taxi like a pro. _I hope everything is alright_, he thought.

* * *

Later that evening, Tony wouldn't stop bugging Steve about how his day had gone. Pepper had tried to be helpful and distract him, but he wouldn't be deterred. She had even gone so far to whisper something in his ear that made the man's eyes go wide, but apparently Tony saw Steve's almost-date as something more worthy of his attention than whatever had gone, just moments before, from his ear to his groin.

"Look at it this way, Pep, I can get sex anytime I want," her eyebrows raised in a hilarious dis-believing fashion when he said this, "and the good Captain here has probably never had sex in his life," it was Steve's turn to raise his eyebrows this time, accompanied by a blush and a protest that was cut off by Tony's continuing statement, "so it is my duty, as a veteran on the subject, to lead the naïve to the, uh, promised land, so to speak."

"What does whether or not I've had sex have anything to do with… well, anything?"

"Well have you?" Tony asked. It was a trap, plain and simple.

"You, don't have to answer that Steve," Pepper interjected, once again coming to his rescue.

"No no, he's a big boy, don't baby him"

"I'm not babying him!" Pepper replied, feigning offense.

"I- didn't mean… come here Pepper," she turned away from Tony's advances with a noticeable pout. "Come on, Pep!"

Ignoring him, she stood up and walked out of the room, her nose in the air. Looking between Pepper and Steve, Tony made the decision to go after her. Though, not before leaving Steve with one last comment, "We'll finish this later."

Suddenly alone in the room and with no more teasing to deal with, Steve couldn't help but marvel at Pepper's handiwork. And people said Tony was the genius!


	4. It Never Entered My Mind

**Author's Notes: Sorry I'm updating late this Monday, I was at a wedding all week instead of working on this :P Well, enjoy!  
And yes, the description of Lucy is coming... I actually forgot to include one earlier, but I've got a great idea for it now and it didn't fit with this chapter.  
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**In other news, anyone know the theme for the chapter titles yet? You get a whole batch of interweb cookies if you get it! ;)  
**

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_The headlining story tonight is that Manhattan's resident superhero Iron Man, also known as multi-billionaire and forerunner for green energy, Tony Stark, has held a press conference announcing that he and, nostalgia collectors and historians may believe it or not, **Captain America** will be involving themselves in a more hands-on initiative to helping the NY metro area recoup from what some experts are calling the 'War of the Worlds'. This announcement was hailed with great enthusiasm and the duo is expected to be involved in individual projects; everything from rebuilding Park Avenue, to helping out the local fire departments, these—_

Lucy turned off her tv, grabbed her coat and bag as she closed up her apartment for the night; on to job number two.

Jogging to the bus station, she pulled her coat on and tried to tuck some unruly locks of hair into the neon bandana the other bar she worked at required all the employees wear. The uniform was a sort of modern take on old western and looked very out of place on the Bay Ridge/Midtown Express but Lucy had gotten used to the stares and just ignored them now. Glancing at her watch, she swore under her breath for the busses running late and tapped her foot on the metal floor impatiently.

As though the traffic could feel her impatience, the buss flew through the all-consuming shadows that the fading day cast over the city. The night, however, was just beginning and as the bus pulled up to Lucy's stop, the streets were bursting with the kind of life only millions of 9-5er's pent up energy could create. Walking through the back entrance of a side street bar called the _Buckin' Buffalo_, she locked her bag in the back room with the rest of the server's stuff and mentally prepared herself for yet another night of drunken idiots, bad music and, hopefully, good tips. And who knows? Maybe tonight would be better than the past few days had been?

The nightlife settled into it's routine, because even the city that never sleeps eventually falls into a sort of chaotic routine, if you've been there long enough, and Lucy adjusted the plaid cowgirl shirt and jean mini skirt so that not too much of her figure would be suspect to the jowls and jeers of the patrons.

"Lucy! I need you at tables' 3 and 4, stat!"

And so, the night began. It started out smoothly enough, only the typical issues with customers, or at least it was smooth until one of the waitresses called Lucy over to the bar with a frantic gesture.

"Lucy, he's back again," the girl said.

"What? I thought I'd gotten rid of that- never mind, I'll take care of him, thanks for telling me," the girl gave Lucy an encouraging smile before flying off to deal with her own troubles. Glancing over at the greasy-looking young man at the end of the bar, Lucy signed and steeled herself. This was going to be a long night.

"Hey! There's my girrl!" the man said, cheap beer wafting off his breath and making Lucy's nose crinkle in disgust.

"I'm not 'your girl' Marcus, now what do you want?" she snapped at him. No mercy.

"Aww come on, don'nna be like that! I jusht stopped by to say hi, is all! Hey, why've you always gotta be like that, huh? Huh?" Marcus slurred out. He swayed slightly on his stool but managed to stay on.

He started absently petting her head, much to her displeasure.

"You always had the nicshist curls… all dark an, an… just beau'iful," he said as she knocked his hand away and took a half step back.

"You're drunk, Marcus, I won't talk to you like this, I told you that," she said. Keep it short, keep it simple; maybe he's not too drunk and he'll just go away?

"That'shhit, Lus, an' you know it!" no such luck. Marcus slammed his fist down on the bar, making Lucy and several other customers jump.

"Marcus please, just leave and I'll talk to you about this later, you're disturbing the- "

"That'shSHIT Lus! What? I comme here… outta the goodness of my heart to take you back an' thish ishow you treat me?" his voice had risen and was threatening to draw even more attention to the two, despite the crowd's already high volume. From the corner of her eye, Lucy could see her manager giver her a nasty look.

"You fucking drunkard, you're going to make me lose my job if you keep this up!" Lucy said, quietly, but desperately. The bartender dropped a glass of something behind the bar and used it as an excuse to leave for a mop, or something… the coward.

"FUCK YOU! You fucking bitch! I was gonna ferrgive yoush for ta' other day… an how you treated me at thhha tha housh…"

"That was _my_ house and you were trespassing. You are not allowed near there and you know that! Now get out before I call the fucking cops!" Lucy said, still trying to keep her voice at a reasonable volume while Marcus's continued to rise. He pounded his fist on the bar again in frustration, his eyes on Lucy the whole time.

"FUCK YOU!" he yelled again and reached uneasily about the bar, as if looking for something to throw. He found a decorative candleholder and chucked it with force at Lucy. Luckily, his aim was very poor and even in her surprised state Lucy was able to duck out of the way. Unfortunately, the candle inside the holder had been lit, meant usually for decoration around the bar, and it caught fire to whatever had spilled behind the bar earlier.

"What did you just-?" a plume of smoke started coming from behind the bar now as one of the dishrags caught. Lucy's eyes went wide when she realized what had happened and she yelled 'fire!' as loud as she could. Though, her attempt at drawing help was not as effective as she had thought, and the packed bar went into panic as the manager tried, in vain, to reach the bar with an extinguisher and another server called 911.

However, Marcus was oblivious to what was wrong and decided to take advantage of Lucy's back being to him. He grabbed a hold of her hair and yanked her back into him. She grunted in pain but managed to get an elbow into the man's stomach, effectively getting him to let go of her.

Marcus was a big guy, though, and wouldn't take such as insult lying down, especially in his drunken state.

"You fuckin' BITCH!" he all but howled in anger. Lucy would have been afraid of him, if an explosion behind the bar hadn't taken her ex-boyfriend's place. The fire had managed to engulf some of the liquor bottles and the bar would soon be no more if it were not brought under control soon.

Everything after the bar exploding happened in a surreal blur. Marcus might have left, Lucy didn't know. Her ears were ringing and something sticky was running down her forehead, making her head hurt. She was on the floor, but her addled brain couldn't quite tell which way was up, let alone out, so she stayed half sitting where she was. Smoke and heat obscured her vision and she could barely make out voices, all yelling, and the cracks of the concrete walls and ceiling around her.

What was going on? Where there still people near? What had happened?

There was a muffled yell, closer to her than the others had been, then someone grabbed her. Blurred colors, fire red and orange, then something blue and white, someone was carrying her…

The cold air hit Lucy like a brick wall and she fell unconscious just as the medics were strapping her into the medical stretcher.

"I think that's the last of them, but I'm going back in to check!"

"The fire Marshall just gave the all-clear, we're bringing these people back now and the firemen should be able to handle it from here," the medic said with a tired smile. "Thanks for all your help, it's been an honor Captain."

Captain America saluted the man and picked up his shield as he followed them to the last ambulance that had been waiting for them. He watched as they loaded Lucy and another woman into the back, but then stopped the medic before they left. Quietly, privately, he asked the man to take special care of these passengers. The medic assured he would, and then left in a whirl of flashing lights and screaming sirens.

* * *

"So, did you find out if she was okay?" Dr. Banner asked when Steve had finished telling him how the night had panned out.

"Yeah, well, sort of… I asked the hospital staff when I was able to stop by an hour or two later, they said she was fine," Steve said.

"But you didn't go see her?" Bruce asked slowly, looking at Steve as if he was stupid.

"No… no I didn't."

"Well… why the hell not?" the doctor responded, with more force than Steve had expected.

"I- I was still in uniform, and it's not like she would have known who I was! And she was probably sleeping, and… "

"I don't believe it. You're making excuses," Bruce said. He smiled sarcastically and laughed, the sound sending a slight chill down Steve's spin. "You really are stupid when it comes to this stuff, aren't you?" he said with an almost cruel look in his eye. What was up with the Doctor?

"Geeze, not you too! Don't I get enough crap from Tony? It's not like- "

"No, no, you see what it's actually very much like is you… you would say 'dizzy with a dame'," Steve blushed up to his ears, "and you're trying so hard to deny that. She's a regular person; she's got her own life, outside of SHEILD or any of this… insane… business.

You know, you've got a great thing going for you, and what really _gets me_ is that you don't even see it. You have a choice here! You can have something that is separate from all this," Bruce gestured largely to the window but Steve knew he wasn't referring to the city outside. Banner continued with a passionate sadness Steve had never heard in his voice before, "You have your own…specialties… but it's not like me or Tony or Thor or Natasha and Clint. You can still end a mission and return to the regular world, go somewhere no one knows your name and nobody's looking for you.

Just, do yourself a favor, and live that life for a while, will you? Just… think about it."

Bruce Banner left Steve with a slue of thoughts running through his head. He sat down on the couch and put his head in his hands, just trying to comprehend everything that had happened in the past 12 hours. Looking up for a moment, his eyes fell on his helmet and mask, still sitting where he'd left them on the table.

The blue was soot covered… seemed like he could never keep it clean when he wore it…


	5. If I Only Had A Brain

**Author's Notes: Sorry this is so late guys! No excuses this time :P  
Please comment, I do love reading them! Also, if you can tell me what the theme is for the chapter titles you get interweb cookies; THE BEST KIND! Also also, apparently this is going to be longer than 5 chapters... keep the suggestions coming!  
**

* * *

"Hey, where're you going Cap?" Tony asked, catching Steve as he was about to walk out the door with his jacket half on.

"Uh… out," Steve said, he looked impatient but Tony didn't seem to notice; or chose not to.

"Ah! That reminds me, there's something that I've been wondering about that maybe you can help me with," Tony put his arm around Steve's shoulder in order to steer him away from the door for the time being. Steve tried to resist, he was _trying_ to go somewhere, after all, but Tony was stronger than he looked.

"So, this girl," Steve rolled his eyes and looked at his watch; Tony ignored the action and kept going, "how come none of us have met her yet? I mean, I don't even know what the lady _looks_ like and that's been kinda bothering me. So go with me here- "

"Tony, I'm really in a hurry."

"-I just can't help picturing some blond and blue-eyed girl in a 'stars and stripes' flapper dress and a bowl cut and I'm pretty sure there aren't any girls like that around here so… shed some light for me?" Tony raised his eyebrows and smiled expectantly, his hand still keeping Steve from escaping.

Maybe if he were just quick about this Tony would let him leave, "I- well she's… uh… got curly hair… and it's kinda long- "

"Steve, Steve, Cap, listen… I'm not looking for a Facebook profile picture, I was thinking something a bit more along the lines of 'Kodak moment'."

Steve just looked confused now.

"Ah, right. How about you give me the Monet version instead?" Still nothing. "Just tell me what you see when you look at her; paint me a picture."

Steve let out a frustrated sigh and looked at his watch again. He was going to be late.

"Alright, let's see… she has dark hair, not black, just very dark. I think she might be Spanish…"

"Hawt."

Steve stopped mid-sentence and just gave the would-be playboy a look of disgust. Tony, realizing he'd just blown his chances of hearing any more, tried to apologize but Steve just gave a frustrated sigh and managed to make his way out the door; finally.

* * *

There she was, walking out of the hospital and into the morning sun.

Her thick, dark curls billowing around her in the city wind framed her face perfectly like one of those Spanish Mary's you see painted on walls in South America. Her dark eyes were tired, but somehow they still held that spark that said she could take anything. Her tanned complexion was like brown sugar… could it be as sweet?

Steve's face heated up as he caught himself on that last thought and squashed it as fast as he could. _That_ was indecent and he had been hanging out with Tony _way_ too often.

He was able to get his head under control in time for her to notice him waiting for her. Steve had asked the hospital staff earlier when she would be released.

"Hey there Soldier-boy, what are you doing here?" she asked with a tired smile. She was happy to see a friendly face, but had he been waiting for her?

"Hey, I guess I was in the neighborhood," he responded easily. "How're you feeling?" he tried to keep the worry from his voice.

"I- I'm fine, just a few scrapes and a bump on the head, that's all… did you… know I was here?" she asked. Really, though, the fire couldn't have been that big in the news, could it? It was just an out of the way bar!

"The, uh, fire was on the news. Something about a, uh, superhero or… something… And you hadn't picked up your phone so I thought something might be wrong!" Steve finished his botched explanation quickly, hoping Lucy would still be a bit too tired to fill in the holes.

"Some super- that's right, the nurse said Captain America brought me out!" Lucy sat on the ground with a look of utter disbelief on her face. A star-spangled superhero from the 1930s, whom had saved the world from aliens only a few months before, had pulled her out of a fire and, if she remembered what the nurse had said correctly, had covered the hospital expenses for her and the other woman who had been brought in! This was all too much in one 12-hour period.

And she had lost her phone in the fire…

and her wallet…

and her favorite jacket!

"Are you sure you're okay? You look pale," Steve sat down beside her but not close enough to touch. Internally, he hoped to God he hadn't said something wrong just now. _Please don't focus on Captain America… I don't know how to answer those questions._

"Steve?" her unusually quite voice brought him back to attention, "I- I don't mean to be a bother but… could you give me a ride home?" Well, that wasn't what he had expected her to say. "I lost my wallet in the fire and I…" he could hear a quiver in her voice, "I'm sorry, I just- "

"Of course! Yeah, whatever you need Lucy!" Steve said quickly so she could catch herself before any tears leaked out. She looked ahead and gave him a fleeting smile in thanks, not yet ready to speak again till she'd gotten herself under control. This wasn't the worst thing that could have happened… she could handle this.

Deciding that a taxi would be a better idea than putting the just recovered Lucy on a motorcycle, Steve hailed one over and opened the door for her, letting her in first. Lucy, noticing the chivalrous act, gave him a look that said 'you're being silly' and then said thank you as she climbed into the back seat. She gave the driver her address and settled back for the rather long drive from Manhattan to Brooklyn during mid-day.

After a few long minutes of some rather uncomfortable silence, Lucy finally spoke up.

"Thank you. For the ride, I mean, and for meeting me at the hospital."

"I already told you it was no problem," Steve said with a soft chuckle meant to dispel some of the tension that had built between the two. He didn't know if Lucy was as nervous as he was, but his mind was reeling with things he wanted to say, and even more he could never say.

"Hey Steve?"

"Yeah?"

"How did you know which hospital I was at?"

"…uh," _Crap._

Lucy turned to look at him and searched his face with a sincerely curious look. The question had been sitting on the tip of her tongue since she saw him standing in the mid-day sun outside the hospital. If it had been anyone else, she probably would have been majorly creeped out, especially considering her past experience with guys, but there was something distinctively different about Steve, so she gave him a chance.

This was that chance… and Steve had no idea what to do.

Dr. Banner would have lied. Tony would have admitted the truth outright and probably with a smug smile. What would the others do?

Thor would have given her the truth from the very beginning; he didn't ever seem to care that most humans have difficulty accepting the existence of demi-gods.

Natasha and Clint probably wouldn't be in this situation to begin with.

Dr. Banner was right; Steve's situation was different from the rest of them.

Lucy sighed and looked out the window, "It's alright; you don't have to answer right now. Just, don't wait too long, okay?"

Out of all the responses to his prolonged silence Steve had expected, that wasn't one of them. "Sure," was all he managed to say before they fell again into silence.

Lucy, still wiped from the previous events, laid her head back on the seat and closed her eyes. She hadn't meant to fall asleep but the exhaustion finally hit her and she shifted into a more comfortable position.

Steve's shoulder ended up being positioned more comfortably and he couldn't help but blush at their close proximity. In the rearview mirror, he just caught the driver giving him a suggestive wink before he (now _very_ red-faced) dedicated his attention to staring out the window in the most inconspicuous way possible.


End file.
